Omri Hillel's pitbull, Billie, was diagnosed with DLE, discoid lupus erythematosus, an autoimmune condition in which the immune system attacks the skin on the nose and sunlight makes it worse. The vet explained there was no quick fix, only management: twice-daily ointment, avoiding UV exposure, and expecting flare-ups for life.
The ointment plan quickly failed. Billie licked it straight off, and a dog cannot be kept from her own nose twice a day forever. So Hillel designed a protective cover, which he called Doguard. It took thirteen prototypes, but eventually Billie could wear it, the ointment stayed in place, and she could sunbathe again.
Hillel never planned to sell it. He uploaded the design files to Maker World and shared the process on Reddit so other owners could print their own. As requests piled up, he found that many people were not makers and simply wanted a working solution. On October 1st, he launched a small website. Sixteen days later, his first customer placed an order.
The business grew quickly and was renamed Snout Cover. Hillel still prints, assembles and packs every cover himself on one printer in his studio shed. As of today, Snout Cover has helped more than 500 dogs, including 395 orders shipped to 16 countries. International shipping proved the hardest part, and Hillel has resent parcels at his own cost when they got stuck.
Source: Hacker News · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing